‘A diverse, rich, united and informative discussion from all sides’

Sixteen-year-old Qahira Shah was invited to London for the launch of Our Generation, Our Vote. Here, the #iwill ambassador, from Cardiff, tells her story…

I received an exciting opportunity through #iwill inviting me to the launch of the campaign of Our Generation, Our Vote, which is the largest election for children and took place in Westminster, London, writes Qahira.

Prior to the event, I did some research into the event and the campaign and saw all the incredible work being done to ensure young voices across the UK were being listened to.

It was intriguing to see the motivation behind this campaign as a shocking one in 10 young people in the UK aged eight-17 did not believe politicians focus on the needs of young people when making decisions, but 88 per cent of young people did think it was important to have a say.

Personally, having been involved in youth action and being a Welsh Youth Parliament Member, I found this to be quite disappointing.

I knew initiatives like ‘Our Generation, Our Vote‘ encouraged young people to talk about using their voice to raise their concerns about issues and also use their voices to pitch new ideas to their local MPs and overall be more well-rounded and conscientious members of society. Young people are the future and the issues being discussed in Westminster today would have ripple effects on us as we grow older.

It is also important for young people to feel their views are taken seriously and so that is what was explored during the event as MPs from across the UK were in attendance from all the major parties.

The event took place on April 24 and started in the evening, so I went to school in the morning before getting on the train with my dad to Paddington Station from Cardiff.

After a speedy train ride and a few coffees, we hopped onto the tube and arrived in Westminster in good time.

As soon as we stepped out of the station, the first thing we saw was Big Ben amid the Houses of Parliament. It was really cool as we see it all the time on TV, but to be there in person felt surreal. As we got closer to the venue, we took some pictures in front of the Houses of Parliament and were amazed by how all the major decisions in politics were made in the building next to me.

We met with Kate Roberts from UK Youth before making our way to the venue before the start of the event.

When we entered, the event was in full swing, mainly in attendance by young people from all sorts of youth organisations. We were watching Sky FYI young reporter Scarlett Archer interviewing a young person for their programme in the main room when I was called in for a relaxed interview with Save the Children.

After being mic’d up, I was in front of a camera and asked several questions about my thoughts on the campaign on the whole and also what matters were important to me. I was full of nerves so started off making lots of mistakes, but got the hang of it by the end, making sure I was conveying all my ideas and thoughts. I have to say, it made me feel like I was being listened to.

The young people from all the organisations sat in the reserved seating at the front, near the panel of MPs.

To start off the event, we heard from two girls from Wales from the organisation Platfform, a Wales-based initiative. They talked about the importance of their work with mental health and social change.

I found it really thought-provoking and it was definitely a plus that they were also from Wales as in many settings we do not see enough Welsh representation, even though we make up a lot of the UK population. I noticed a lot of the signage was also translated into Welsh, which was great to see. 

This was shortly followed by the Q&A portion of the event with the panel hosted by Scarlett.

On the panel were Dr Ben Spencer MP, Anneliese Dodds MP, Layla Moran MP, Baroness Carmen Smith and Coun Ria Patel, who were from all the major political parties namely Conservatives, Labour, Plaid Cymru, the Green Party and the Liberal Democrats.

It truly felt like young people were in charge as the young reporter was the one to pose the questions written by young people to the MPs.

The questions were intriguing and definitely made the MPs think and reflect and it displayed a more human side from the political figures and parliamentarians.

Hearing their answers on topics like mental health and the cost of living allowed there to be a greater connect between MPs and their constituents.

Initially, I had thought a lot of the MPs would be pushing their parties’ agendas to the audience. However, they seemed to really listen attentively and answered the questions with sound reasoning.

One panellist I was intrigued by was Baroness Smith, from Plaid Cymru. She is the youngest member of the Houses of Lords and made sure young people’s interests were at the forefront of her work. It was amazing to see someone so young who understands young people really well take up a place in the House of Lords.

Something that stuck with me from the event was something said by Ms Dodds, that young people now more than ever feel like they will not surpass their parents in terms of employment and financial stability. She was disappointed the current political state means young people have little faith and hope in the future.

It was disheartening to hear but was, if anything, a call to action. When asked what they would do about young people not being involved in politics, they all effectively stated what they were doing to engage with young people, which included attending schools, events and having a youth branch within their parties.

Overall it was a diverse, rich, united and informative discussion from all sides.

Finally, we heard from another young person from Manchester, and her speech was amazing. I was really in awe of her passion, confidence and what she said was really hard-hitting and vital.

She discussed the social inequality in Manchester and brought attention to the importance of Parliamentarians making good decisions that will benefit young people and to be reminded of the responsibility MPs have to represent these young people. 

The main event had ended and it was time to talk to other attendees, or in other words ‘mingle’.

I could not leave without talking to Baroness Smith and so I asked her how she got into politics, what her main focus was and what she hoped to achieve during her time as a member of the House of Lords.

She imparted some fascinating ideas and spoke about her personal journey into the world of politics. This was fascinating as it all started with a Plaid campaigner knocking on her door which was preceded by years of mentorship from other Plaid members.

We took some more pictures before I said my goodbyes to all the people who made me feel welcome and to the organisers. Finally, I headed home to Cardiff where I reflected on the events of the day.

#iwill is a movement comprised of more than 1,000 organisations and 700 young #iwill Ambassadors & Champions from across the UK. They are united by a shared belief that all children and young people should be supported and empowered to make a positive difference on the issues that affect their livers, their communities, and broader society.

#iwill is empowering, challenging, independent, collaborative and inclusive – it belongs to everybody.

The #iwill movement is powered by young people and organisations. The #iwill Ambassadors and #iwill Champions, alongside organisations who sign up to the Power of Youth Charter, help ensure meaningful action is taken to support more children and young people to be active citizens.

The #iwill Partnership is made up of leaders of collective action groups working within and across sectors and nations of the UK to guide the #iwill movement. The independent #iwill Coordination Hub, hosted by Volunteering Matters and UK Youth supports the #iwill Partnership, #iwill Ambassadors and broader #iwill movement.

UK Youth is a leading charity with a vision that all young people are equipped to thrive and empowered to contribute at every stage of their lives. With an open network of more than 8,000 youth organisations and nation partners; UK Youth reaches more than four million young people across the UK and is focused on unlocking youth work as the catalyst of change that is needed now more than ever. To find out more, visit ukyouth.org 

UK Youth is involved in a range of programmes designed to help young people thrive, such as outdoor learning, physical literacy, social action and employability, including Hatch, a youth employability programme run in partnership with KFC. For more on UK Youth’s programmes, see ukyouth.org/what-we-do/programmes